Rolex Sports Car Series may roll under NASCAR banner
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – NASCAR is in discussions to roll the Grand American Road Racing Association’s Rolex Sports Car Series under the NASCAR banner, NASCAR Vice Chairman Jim France confirmed Thursday.
“I think it could be an opportunity for both the Grand-Am Sports Car Rolex Series and also for NASCAR to get a bigger road-racing presence,” France said at Daytona International Speedway. “Nothing has been finalized. It’s just at this point in the talking stages.”
NASCAR already owns the trademark of the Grand American Road Racing Association, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and France was one of the founders of the sports-car series.
“We have a little bit of a connection,” said France, the brother of the late Bill France Jr. and uncle of current NASCAR Chairman Brian France.
The Grand-Am Series runs as a companion event to Cup races at Daytona and Watkins Glen and as a companion event to Nationwide races at Mexico City and Montreal.
“NASCAR currently has two [road-course] events, but there’s a lot of drivers that are coming out of road-racing now that are trying to get into the Sprint, Nationwide and truck series,” France said. “It would broaden
NASCAR’s base a little bit ... with kind of a more direct road-racing connection.”
